Why Colleges Scoff
At Your Kid's GPA

Universities Devise Formulas
To Assess High-School Marks

High-school students place a lot of weight on their grade-point averages. But they may be interested to know that many colleges increasingly don't.

The problem is that GPAs -- always somewhat erratic because curriculums differ so much -- have in some cases become almost meaningless as high schools experiment with a raft of ways to measure students. Some, worried about putting their students at a disadvantage with college admissions offices, give extra weight to grades in more difficult or advanced-placement courses. Other...